A Christmas Carol (Canarrow Style)
by changingdestiny40
Summary: Oliver Queen is about to marry Felicity Smoak on Christmas Day, but a visit from his mother and three other very wise ghosts prevent him from making the biggest mistake of his life while also showing him the woman who's always been the perfect choice for him.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi everyone, and Merry Christmas. I wanted to write a Canarow fic for this Christmas but couldn't think of anything. I'd already written one in which Oliver and Sara enjoy Christmas morning with their kids and also an Assassin Canarrow fic in which Oliver, Sara, and Nyssa take turns kissing each other underneath the mistletoe. Thankfully I've managed to come up with something and it will be another "Arrow" version of "A Christmas Carol". I say "another" because there's been three other similar fics written like it, although I can't remember if there was a Christmas version. Anyway, I hope you'll like it, including the anti Felicity camp.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own "Arrow". It and its characters belong to DC, WB, the CW, and its showrunners.**

Oliver was busy putting on his necktie as he prepared for his wedding day. He was really looking forward to this day for it would be the day he would marry the woman he believed was the love of his life, Felicity Megan Smoak. All of his loved ones were gathered together, Diggle was acting as his best man, Thea was the maid of honor, and Roy and Ray Palmer were the groomsmen. Today was also Christmas Day, the day he and his fiance had chosen for their wedding day. It's just that something about Christmas, being the day of festiveness and holiday cheer, felt like a good day to have a wedding.

As Oliver prepared to go out the door of the room he was inside of and to what would become the rest of his life, he suddenly felt a presence behind him. Whipping around and placing himself in a defense stance, his eyes widened in shock at seeing his mother standing before him.

"Mom ?", Oliver whispered at the sight of his mother, not quite believing what he was seeing but knowing deep inside of his heart that it really was her.

"Oliver my beautiful boy. It's so good to see you again", Moira responded to her son, giving him a warm smile while her eyes glistened with unshed tears

Oliver quickly ran over and enveloped his mom in a warm hug which she happily returned, the two of them holding each other tightly while Moira gently stroked her son's hair. After they were through, Oliver released her and looked at her in curiosity.

"Not that I'm so happy to see you and grateful for the fact that you left the afterlife to come and see me again, but what exactly are you doing here ?", he asked her, really wanting to know the reason as to her presence here.

"I'm here Oliver in order to stop you from making the biggest mistake of your life. And the mistake is that you're about to marry the wrong person. I'm here to help show you who you're actually meant to be with.

Oliver looked at her with wide eyes, shocked and appalled by his mother's words.

"What do you mean I'm marrying the wrong woman ?" I love Felicity and she's the light to my darkness. She's the best thing to ever happen to me and she's the light to my darkness. But if you don't think she's the one for me, then who is and why did you come to the conclusion that she's not the right one ?" He asked her with disbelief in his voice. Sure Felicity could be a little brash at times, and perhaps even a little bossy, but she still kept him grounded as far as he was concerned and really was his light, so how could she be anything other the best thing that ever happened to him ?

"Just what I said Oliver", Moira answered firmly. "And to answer your question, the woman you're meant to be with is that lovely young woman Sara Lance. The two of you were more than a suitable match and one that shouldn't have broken up. In fact, it was Sara who was the best thing that ever happened to you. The two of you are so much alike in that you both started off as immature youths before becoming mature individuals and honorable heroes, not to mention that you both faced your inner darkness and conquered it. There's so much more you have in common but I'm not going into that, although I will say that I've seen the way the two of you look at each other from time to time when you think that the other is unaware or anyone else for that matter".

Oliver scoffed at that and opened his mouth to deny it, but Moira gave him a pointed look that promptly shut him up and caused him to sigh. Yes, he'd given the occasional longing look at Sara but that was only him remembering their past together and the love they once had, but they'd both moved on and that was it. Before he could dwell on it, his mom continued.

"Hopefully the journey you're about to embark upon will open your eyes to the reasons as to why Sara is the right one for you but will also show you the type of person Felicity really is."

"And what journey is that mom ?", her son asked her, still not exactly believing her words but willing to humor her.

"Simple. You will be visited by three ghosts who will show you the past, present, and future, and I have no doubt that this experience will change your life for the better."

Oliver's eyes widened upon hearing these words. He started to wonder if someone had transported him into "A Christmas Carol" since this situation was beginning to eerily remind him of that story. But he was nothing like Scrooge, except, admittedly, for the fact that he could be grumpy at times, but he didn't hate the world and was certain he had everything he needed already. Before he could open his mouth to question this, Moira continued once more.

"I must be going now Oliver, but you must be sure to listen to the words of the other ghosts and heed them well."

"Please don't go mom. I miss you so much" Oliver quickly cried out to her and moved to embrace his mother once more.

"I miss you to my beautiful boy, but I must return", she answered him as she rocked him gently. "Know that I'll always be with you and am always watching out for you from where I am."

"I love you mom" Oliver responded to her as mother and son reluctantly parted.

"I love you to my son, and someday we'll see each other again. And since today is Christmas, you must always remember that the magic of Christmas will always lie in your heart." She then gave him a quick kiss on his forehead and then vanished in a beam of light.

Oliver watched her as she faded away, tears in his eyes, and with nothing else to do, sat back and waited for the first of his ghostly visitors to make their appearance.

 **To Be Continued**

 **A/N And I hope all you liked the first chapter of this Canarrow version of "A Christmas Carol". I personally don't know if I'll write the rest of this on today since me and my parents will be visiting some of our family today for Christmas and I'll be busy visiting them, enjoying Christmas dinner, and watching TV. Hopefully though I'll get out another chapter later today or tomorrow and will hopefully finish this fic before New Years Day.**

 **Before I go, I'd like to give you a small spoiler and tell you that the ghost of Christmas Past will be Shado, the ghost of Christmas Present will be Tommy, and I don't know who I should use as the ghost of Christmas Future should be. But let it be know that I won't be using Waller. She was mean.**

 **I'll be going now but Merry Christmas to all of you and hopefully you guys will enjoy your Christmas with your loved ones.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi guys, and Happy New Year to all. I'm sorry I didn't post a new chapter before New Year's and have no excuse except that I was lazy and didn't feel like writing. I'm back for now though and decided to write and post chapter 2, so please enjoy.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own "Arrow" and that is that. Though if I did, I would appoint my fellow authors QueenCanarrowDeathstroke and Arrylus Marligue as its showrunners since they are excellent writers.**

Oliver was still standing and waiting for his next ghostly visitor while thinking upon his mother's words when a bright light suddenly encased the room he was in. Once the light faded, Oliver took in the emerging figure and to his surprise, it was Shado herself, looking far more beautiful and radiant than she had appeared on the island. Oliver's eyes started to well with tears at seeing her again, especially upon remembering her death and how he failed to save her. He managed to recover and lifted his gaze to look upon her.

"Hello Oliver", she greeted him with a warm smile. It's so good to see you again."

"Shado?", he whispered to her, a little unsure as to her presence but her gentle nod and his own heart convinced him that it was indeed her, just like his mother had visited him earlier. He quickly went over to her and embraced her tightly, which she happily returned. His eyes suddenly filled with regret and he quickly pulled away from her.

"I'm so sorry Shado. I'm so sorry I couldn't save you. That I chose Sara over you instead of trying harder to save you both. It's all my fault that both you and your father are gone and I..." Oliver began with more tears forming in his eyes when Shado promptly interrupted him with a finger pressed to his lips and a hard stare.

"No, you listen to me Oliver. It is NOT your fault that I died, and you are also not to blame for my father's death." Oliver tried to interrupt but she wouldn't let him and continued talking, hoping to finally be able to see reason. The fact that he blamed himself for so many things that weren't even his fault astounded her and her father as they observed him from the afterlife, not to mention annoyed his parents over there.

"Again Oliver, it is NOT, YOUR, FAULT!", she stated again, putting careful emphasis onto each word while staring hard into his eyes. "Our deaths were the fault of mad men who refused to resist the darkness in their hearts. You did everything you could to try and save us both and we are forever grateful to you for that. Furthermore, on that night you were supposed to choose, you weren't choosing Sara over me but instead you were trying to sacrifice yourself to save us both and that's the truth of the matter. Most importantly, while you were unable to save my father and myself, you were able to avenge us and that means more to us both than anything else you could've done. Please stop blaming yourself and instead accept the truth of my words, if not for yourself then for my sake".

Oliver took a deep breath once she finished, and resolved to do just that, if only for the sake of the woman, or rather her ghost, standing in front of him. Besides he already knew deep down somewhere that he wasn't responsible but couldn't help himself. Her words however had finally given him the reassurance he needed to truly accept the truth and the fact that she nor her father blamed him took off a weight that been lying on his heart for so many years. He then lifted his head to look at her once more.

"So I take it you're the first ghost and the one who's supposed to take me to revisit my past."

"I am, and it's time for us to go Oliver", she said to him, and then taking his hand, she led him away until they vanished.

AAA

 _February 14, 2000_

After arriving in the past, which was right next to the Lance home, Oliver and Shado watched as his 15 year old self made his way to the house while holding a card and a rose in his hands. The younger Oliver made his way to the door and, after taking a moment to compose himself, shyly knocked on said door. It was later opened by a 14 year old Sara Lance who looked curiously at not only her and her sister's childhood friend but the boy she secretly had a crush on, making her heart flutter at the sight of him.

"Hey Sara", Oliver greeted her with a dopey grin, trying to sound cool but failing miserably. Sara however found his efforts amusing.

"Hi Ollie", she replied, giving him a cute smile of her own while toying with the strands of her hair, causing him to blush. "To what do I owe this visit from the cute boy next door?" she asked him while leaning onto the door frame. "And what's with the card and the rose?" Secretly she was hoping they were for her, perhaps even for today, it being Valentines Day's but of course she wouldn't say that out loud.

"Well um, you see I..." Oliver began, stuttering and trying to mentally build up his courage. Man it was hard telling the girl you really like if she'll be your Valentine, and especially since this was his first time doing anything like this. He finally took a deep breath, decided to be brave, and plunged head on.

"Thereasonimhereisbecauseiwantyoutobemyvalentine", Oliver rushed out. Sara looked at him with confusion, barely understanding what he just said.

"Huh?" she asked him with confusion in her voice, barely understanding a word he just said, but with hope that it was what she thought it was.

Oliver cleared his throat, and then tried again.

"The reason I'm here is because I want you to be my Valentine", he managed to say, but slowly this time, feeling embarrassed that he'd just rushed out the words the first time. He then held out the rose and the card. "These are also for you, if you'll have them and me, as your Valentine today of course." He then gulped, nervously waiting for her response.

Sara smiled brightly at him and placed both of her hand over her heart.

"Of course Ollie, I'd love to be your Valentine and it was so sweet of you to ask me" she happily answered him. She then walked right up to him and, after taking the card and the rose from him, stood on her tiptoes and gave him a sweet kiss on his cheek, causing him to blush once more. He then asked her if she'd like to hang out with him sometime, to which she answered that she'd love to. She then turned and, after turning to give him a smile and to blow him a kiss, went back inside her house and laid her head back onto the now closed door of her home with a sigh while Oliver outside did a fist pump and happily walked home, whistling all the way.

Oliver from the present observed all of this, the memory of this event returning to his mind, causing him to smile fondly at this. He remembered all of the emotions inside of him during that time, emotions which were suddenly rushing back into his mind. He remembered his crush on Sara when they were young children and how it grew when they reached their early teen years. He remembered how, after this event, he and Sara began to spend a lot of time together over the next two years, their feelings for each other growing and deepening. They were even each others first kiss, something the both of them were deliriously happy about.

He then remembered however that the two of them began to get drawn into the partying life more and more, causing them to gradually drift apart from one another, and while he was too proud to admit it back then, it had caused a void to enter his heart which in turn led him to try and fill it by becoming an avid womanizer. He had seen a chance to reconnect with Sara when she sneaked over to a party he and Tommy were hosting until it was broken up by the cops, which was Laurel's doing and something he would learn from Sara during their time on the island. He then got distracted by Laurel pursuing him and that, combined with his parents favoring her, caused him to gravitate towards her and deluded himself into believing that she was the love of his life.

Eventually he would end up running back to Sara, ostensibly because he feared a commitment with Laurel but now, as he thought back to these events, he began to see the truth which was that he'd never stopped loving Sara, not that it didn't excuse his actions towards her sister, but it was clear that somewhere within his subconscious, he knew she was the one for him. And then of course came the _Gambit_ and everything else that followed.

"As you can see Oliver, Sara was the first girl you ever truly loved, and you were the first boy she ever loved", Shado said to him, placing a gentle hand onto his shoulder. "And while this isn't always the case, there are times when your first love is also your one true love and as you can see, that was clearly the case between yourself and Sara. The two of you only made the mistake of pushing each other away once, here in the past, and then again during your conflict with Slade. You should've fought for her, just as she should've fought for you in the past. And if you really want to have a bright future, you must give up an illusion, which is what Felicity is, and be with the woman you were truly meant to be with. As one of your dearest friends, I implore you not to make the biggest mistake of your life by marrying the wrong person and instead choose the one you've always known truly has your heart instead of settling for second best, or should I say, is not even best or good for you in any way, shape, or form."

Oliver thought about her words and everything he'd just seen and remembered. It was true that Sara was his first love and a part of him would admit that he'd never stopped loving her, but they'd both still moved on and there was no changing that. Besides, even if they both still loved each other, they had, as Shado said, pushed each other away and therefore the damage was already done. Yes, he would always love Sara and remember what could've been, but his future was with Felicity and he couldn't think of anything else that could convince him otherwise, although Shado provided a compelling argument to the contrary that was admittedly causing him to rethink a few things, as much as he was trying not to right now.

"I appreciate what you've shown to me Shado, and I have to admit that old feelings I thought were gone have returned to me and I can't seem to shake them off. But it doesn't matter anyway because the past is the past and I can only look forward to my future with Felicity. I love her and can't just throw her away just because of a past love even if Sara had been the one for me back then. It wouldn't be fair to my fiance'. And even if I wanted to call off my whole wedding and run back to Sara, I don't even know if she still feels the same way anymore."

Shado shook her head in amusement, but also exasperation, at Oliver's words. He was a good man, and someone she'd loved, but he could be so aggravating at times. At least the second ghost that would follow her would hopefully succeed in, if nothing else, showing him why Felicity wasn't the right one for him but instead the total opposite. In fact, she was sure he'd change his mind in a hurry if he only knew what Felicity was doing behind his back. Plus, as far as she was concerned, only a fool would not be able to see that Sara did indeed still love him deeply. Heck, the only reason she'd been having so many flings during her time on the _Waverider_ was to distract herself from her feelings for him.

"Well Oliver, you're wrong on so many counts and while recognizing your feelings for Sara is a start, there's still more you must discover and hopefully the ghost who follows me will open your eyes to the truth and grant you the wisdom to follow your heart", Shado said to him in return. "However I must now take you back but wish you success in your future and hope you'll make the right choice for said future."

With that said, Shado took him back to his present and, after an exchange of goodbyes between them and a warm hug, Shado vanished and Oliver sat down and waited for his second ghost to visit and also with a whole lot to think about.

 **To Be Continued**

 **A/N And that's chapter 2 everyone and I hope you all enjoyed it. As for the comments regarding who the third ghost should be, thank you very much for all of the suggestions. However, I don't want to use Laurel since Stand with Ward and Queen already used her as the last ghost for his own version of "A Christmas Carol". I also don't want to use Conner Hawke since I'm looking to use characters who've passed away, not time travel, hence the term 'ghosts'. I'm also not using Sara either since she's alive and, besides that, I'm wanting to use characters who can show Oliver why Sara is the one for him while Felicity is not, instead of Sara advocating for herself.**

 **Thanks very much for the suggestions however and please feel free to keep them coming in regards to the future ghost.**

 **Also on a side note, for those of you within the fan base who're not watching the Flarrowverse due to hating the direction it went in regards to "Supergirl" S2, for those who watch that show, "The Flash" S3, and "Arrow" S4, and want those shows to remain at their S1 roots while also wanting them to be focused on action and plot while romance, ships, and liberal politics are kept at a low minimum, or a minimum at the very least, and want the title characters to be the stars of their own shows and hope for a compelling big bad, I strongly encourage you who fit into that category to please return and watch this season's "Supergirl", "The Flash", and "Legends". They are excellent seasons, give you what you want in regards to what I listed above, and show solid proof that the Flarowverse can be saved. You guys would have to skip 4x01-4x02 of "The Flash" since Iris misbehaves, and you might find new character Ralph a little annoying at times during the other episodes, but I can assure you that everything else is outstanding and I think you'll enjoy this season, if you're also alright with "Legends" delving into sorcery for the second half of its season and also Captain Cold's return.**

 **Also, the extremes of feminism and male machoism "Supergirl" displayed within seasons 1 and 2 respectively are gone and instead both males and females are treated with respect. As for "The Flash", while it still has a WestAllen focus, it's not as high in prominence as it was last season. In addition, Kreisberg, who repented by returning those two programs to their roots and cut back on romance and ships, a bit more for "Supergirl" though, was fired due to unrelated allegations made against him and now Berlanti controls those two shows and I assume will be controlling the direction of the back half of those seasons, set to air next week. So Kreisberg's gone and Berlanti's in.**

 **As for "Arrow", it's not safe for your branch of the fan base to watch yet and you'll only be mad about the first half of its new season. So I must warn you to steer clear of it for now since I have an idea of what you guys like and dislike. I do however encourage you to make an exception for 6x05-6x07 since the first two are Slade centric, and he was given justice, while 6x07 was very good in my opinion.**

 **So I encourage you guys to please return to the Flarrowverse in regards to "The Flash", "Supergirl" for those who watched it, and "Legends". They are safe to watch in my opinion this season and hopefully your return will change anyone's minds who believe the Flarrowverse can't be saved. Just avoid watching the first two episodes of "The Flash' due to Iris's attitude and avoid all of "Arrow" for the moment, except for 6x05-6x07, although Roy's coming back for a handful of episodes, starting with episode 15, while Thea's awake and is back in the fold. Helena might also be coming back but only time will tell. Black Siren is in the season as a regular and she's being given tremendous justice, so that's good. And Felicity, who's behaving so much like a mature angel that you guys would find her a bizarro version/polar opposite of the Felicity you hated with all of your might, along with Diggle are firmly and almost harshly, almost in regards to how harsh, called to the carpet regarding some naughty actions of theirs during 6x07, and they both apologize to those they wronged.**

 **Have a very good day.**

'


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